Amazon denies rumored plans for Bitcoin support

Published at: July 27, 2021

Amazon has refuted recent speculation it may be readying to support Bitcoin (BTC) payments, asserting it currently has no plans for BTC.

According to a Reuters report on Tuesday citing a spokesperson from the firm, Amazon remains interested in the crypto industry but has no specific plans to onboard digital assets for payments just yet:

“Notwithstanding our interest in the space, the speculation that has ensued around our specific plans for cryptocurrencies is not true.”

However, the spokesperson did not deny that Amazon is researching crypto payments, adding, “We remain focused on exploring what this could look like for customers shopping on Amazon.”

On Thursday, Amazon posted a job opening for a digital currency and blockchain product lead. Four days later, London’s City A.M. newspaper ran a story citing an “insider” who claimed Amazon was “definitely” preparing to support Bitcoin payments and launch a native token — igniting frenzied anticipation for Amazon’s purported crypto plans.

Chinese crypto media outlet Wu Blockchain attributed Amazon’s rumored plans to Monday’s surging market action, during which Bitcoin gained roughly 15% in less than three hours amid a violent squeeze that drove more than $110 million in liquidations. In a tweet on Monday, Wu stated:

“Bitcoin rose by 12% in one hour, leading the increase. Because [the] Chinese have just gotten up. It is obvious that the price of Bitcoin has started to rise after this rumor about Amazon spread in the Chinese community.”

Related: Amazon plans to accept Bitcoin payments this year, claims insider

With Amazon dismissing its rumored plans to support Bitcoin, BTC prices have started to retreat. At the time of writing, BTC was trading down 4.4% over the past 24 hours at $36,770, according to CoinGecko.

On Friday, Cointelegraph reported on the position posted by Amazon’s payments acceptance and experience steam. The product lead will be tasked with developing the company’s strategy of digital currency and blockchain as well as a product roadmap.

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